SAN ANGELO, Tex. – Bemidji State University Football prepares for the first round of the NCAA Playoffs with a trip to San Angelo, Tex. for a rematch against No. 16/15 Angelo State University. 
 
The Beavers and Rams have met only one other time in program history which came during the 2022 season in the second round of the playoffs. ASU came away with a 33-7 win in San Angelo to advance to the Super Region 4 finals. 
 
The Rams earned a first-round home game in the playoffs after moving up to their third seed in the Super Region 4 rankings. Facing Bemidji State, the winner of this game will face the winner of No. 2 Western Colorado vs. No. 7 Central Washington while Colorado State-Pueblo earned the top seed. 
 
Bemidji State Notes

• The Bemidji State Beavers enter the weekend as one of just five teams in the NCAA to make the playoffs in each of the past four seasons. In the eight seasons with Brent Bolte at head coach, the Beavers have made post-season appearances five of those years with this game being the eighth competition. 
• Last weekend, the Beavers took down then No. 15/10 Augustana University in a season-defining upset, earning a playoff bid.
• After last weekend's win, BSU broke back into the national rankings at 24th in the D2Football.com poll and is now receiving votes in the AFCA Coaches Poll.
• Over the past week, the Beavers have begun to see post-season awards trickle in with Defensive Coordinator Joe Ford earning the NSIC's Assistant Coach of the Year nod and 14 student athletes grabbing All-Conference honors, six first teamers and eight on second team. 
• Earning an All-NSIC second team nod, Jayden Washington leads the Beavers on the ground with 695 total rushing yards and four touchdowns. A redshirt sophomore from Apple Valley, Minn., Washington is just 50 yards away from reaching 1,000 in his short career as a Beaver. 
• One of the Beavers' six All-NSIC first teamers, Brice Peters, is just 15 receiving yards shy of hitting the 1,000 mark for the season. He is also sits at 12th in the nation for receiving touchdowns and 15th for receiving yards.
• BSU's Gang Green Defense, landed eight All-Conference selections with four on each team. Marcus Hansen leads the first team honorees with 52 total tackles, 13.5 tackles for a loss and 7.5 sacks. 
• Also making the First Team's defense were Stephen Hoffman and Cade Barrett. Hoffman sits at 41 tackles this season with 10 tackles for a loss and six sacks, plus 14 quarterback hurries and two forced fumbles. Barrett has marked 34 tackles with 11 tackles for a loss and seven sacks. Of those sacks, two have been momentum-shifting strip sacks. Barrett was named the NSIC Defensive Player of the Week after his performance against Augustana. 
• Two-time NSIC Special Teams Player of the Week Connor Mantelli has marked 30 points for BSU this season with five made field goals and a perfect 15-for-15 on PAT kicks. He also takes all of BSU's punting duties, marking 45 in the regular season and totaling 1703 yards for an average of 37.84. His game-tying field goal against Augie is tied for third longest in BSU history. 

 
Angelo State Notes 

• ASU finished the Lone Star Conference season undefeated after taking down West Texas A&M 56-19 in the regular-season finale last week.
• The Rams collected 24 All-Conference honors this week including six First-Team Offense selections and eight First- Team Defense selections. 
• In his sixth season as head coach of the Rams, Jeff Girsch earned his third LSC Coach of the Year honor after leading the Rams to a 9-2 overall record, going 9-0 in conference play. Girsch holds a .778 winning percentage at ASU and is currently the winningest coach in program history, earning two LSC titles in the last three seasons.
• Quarterback Braeden Fuller was named the Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Year after leading the conference in passing yards (2,180) and passing touchdowns (18), adding 648 yards on the ground and 10 rushing scores.
• ASU has averaged 32 points per game and has held opponents to 12.09. They've also learned to prevent opposing first downs, marking 208 themselves and keeping opposition to 154. 
• The Rams, similarly to the Beavers, are no strangers to the best of the best in Division II College Football being weekly contenders in their conference. Just three weeks ago, the Rams took on now No. 19 Central Washington University.
• The Beavers will need to pay close attention to their turnover possibilities on Saturday as the Rams have the fourth best turnover margin in the country at +1.55. 
• Similarly to BSU, the ASU defense has been a strong point in the team's successes, ranking ninth in the NCAA for scoring defense and 14th in passing yards allowed.

 
For more information on the Bemidji State Football program, tickets or schedules, visit BSUBeavers.com, follow the Beavers on X (@BSUBeaversFB), like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers) and like them on Instagram (@BSUBeaversFB).
 
Located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, Bemidji State University sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men's and women's hockey membership in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association and Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).